Sports
At U.S. Open, Coco Gauff, Ben Shelton, Brandon Nakashima take care of business as New York expects
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NEW YORK — A year ago, Ben Shelton started his U.S. Open on Court 10, in the quasi-hinterlands of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. To find it, walk over to the other side of the fountains, where a ball that flies over the back fence is basically gone forever.
First Monday a year later, he had a different assignment: opening up Arthur Ashe Stadium at high noon against Dominic Thiem, the 2020 champion and a player whom Shelton watched, jaw on the floor, through his teen years.
How much has Shelton’s life changed in a year?
“I just felt comfortable,” he said. “Used to it. Felt like I had been there before.”
He had indeed. The then-20-year-old played three matches in the biggest stadium in the sport last year, culminating in a semifinal duel with Novak Djokovic. That ended with the 24-time Grand Slam champion mocking Shelton’s hang-up-the-phone celebration, with Shelton staring Djokovic down during an icy handshake.
“After last year, the stage doesn’t get much bigger than that,” Shelton said.
Maybe. Or maybe it does.
For the first time since 1996, there are five men and five women from the U.S. in the top 20. Since none of the men is ranked higher than No. 12, it’s not exactly the glory years of Sampras, Agassi, Courier and Chang. No American man has won this event since Andy Roddick in 2003. But those top five women include Coco Gauff, the defending champion, and four others ranked no lower than Madison Keys at No. 14.
The hope is palpable. The grounds are teeming, with the metal bleachers and concrete gangways of the field courts packed with bodies, noise and expectation.
U.S. Open fans poured into the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center with a sense of genuine hope. (Frank Franklin II / Associated Press)
Shelton was batting leadoff for the bigger names in the top half of the draw, with Gauff coming on after him. She couldn’t rely on the calm and comfort that Shelton experienced as the opening act before he eased through a fading Thiem 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.
Ben Shelton is seeking to emulate his run to the semifinals in 2023. (Seth Wenig / Associated Press)
The last time Gauff played a competitive match here, she finished it flat on her back, with tears streaming down her face and 24,000 delirious fans screaming for her and everything she meant.
The 20-year-old doesn’t like to wave to crowds, because then she sees how many people are watching her. It makes her nervous. But Shelton gave her a jokingly hard time about it during a charity match in Fan Week, so Monday, she waved. Here come the butterflies.
Warming up calmed her down, but then she very nearly lost her serve in her first two attempts. Then she settled down, plowing through an even shakier Varvara Gracheva of France, 6-2, 6-0.
“I feel like I’m finding my game,” Gauff said when it was over.
She’s been shaky since losing in the semifinals of the French Open in June. Earlier than expected losses. On-court spats with coaches over errors and with chair umpires over calls. Her wins this summer have mostly come against players outside the top 50.
She’s No. 2 in the world. She knows she’s supposed to be better than that.
She lost early in Cincinnati, too, but then had a good week of practice, she said. In that time, she flipped the scenario around in her mind, telling herself that the early loss in Ohio, where she was the defending champion, had been a blessing in disguise. It gave her extra time to train, some flat track after the hamster wheel of the Olympics, Canada and Cincinnati.
Coco Gauff says she is settling into her game after a rough patch. (Fatih Aktas / Anadolu via Getty Images)
She walked onto Arthur Ashe on Monday believing that regardless of the scoreline, she would be able to find her game.
“Obviously, getting through the first round like this is good,” she said. “I’ve learned that how you start a tournament doesn’t mean how you’re necessarily going to finish and vice versa.”
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True enough, but the first step is to survive the start. Taylor Fritz knows this better than just about anyone. Two years ago, he arrived in New York thinking he could actually win it.
Djokovic wasn’t playing because he refused to get vaccinated for COVID-19. Rafael Nadal was playing injured. Roger Federer was a month from retirement. Carlos Alcaraz was just a guy called Carlos Alcaraz, or about as close to that as he has ever been.
Fritz instead lost in the first round, to a qualifier named Brandon Holt. Holt is best known for being the son of Tracy Austin, a two-time champion a few generations back, and for beating Fritz at the U.S. Open in 2022 when Fritz thought he had a chance to actually win it.
Taylor Fritz used the momentum of a tight first set to ease past his opponent, Camilo Ugo Carabelli. (Fatih Aktas / Anadolu via Getty Images)
Fritz will think about that loss, and about the double-edge of a home Slam, at every U.S. Open and until he retires.
“It’s awesome to be playing at your home Slam with the crowd and just everything going on,” he said after a straight-sets win over Camilo Ugo Carabelli of Argentina.
Keys, the 2017 runner-up to another American, Sloane Stephens, joined the trio in taking care of business when she rolled through Czech doubles star Katerina Siniakova. Emma Navarro blasted Anna Blinkova, 6-1, 6-1.
Stephens was taking care of business, up 6-0, 3-0 on France’s Clara Burel, but then she faltered to lose 0-6, 7-5, 7-5.
There were some better American surprises. In her first main-draw match on the WTA Tour, 16-year-old wild card Iva Jovic beat Magda Linette of Poland, who is double her age and ranked 347 places higher.
Before the pandemic, Jovic played soccer and swam, an all-round athlete. But once COVID-19 arrived, tennis was the only sport she could pursue, since she didn’t have to be part of a team.
Now she’s the youngest American ever to win a main-draw match at the U.S. Open.
Iva Jovic defeated Magda Linette, who is ranked 347 places above her. (Robert Prange / Getty Images)
Linette figured to be a bit of a tall order, but Jovic had watched other juniors that she had beaten take out solid tour players in recent months. She convinced herself she had the level.
“I have nothing to compare it to, but it’s definitely nice for my first one to be in New York,” said Jovic, who played in front of a packed crowd on Court 15 that could have turned other teen knees to goo.
Then there was Taylor Townsend, the Wimbledon doubles champion, leaning into her status as a big-serving lefty nightmare on the singles court.
“This isn’t an all-of-a-sudden thing,” Townsend said after beating Martina Trevisan of Italy.
“The success that I had in doubles and the understanding of the self is translating now onto the singles court.”
Taylor Townsend’s best singles run in New York was a fourth-round appearance in 2019. (Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
Another surprise? Brandon Nakashima blasting Holger Rune, the No. 15 seed, 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 in a tidy hour and 55 minutes. Throw in Rune’s recent form, and Nakashima’s propensity to lull opponents into errors, and it’s not exactly a big one.
Then came Frances Tiafoe, who had a night slot at Louis Armstrong Stadium. This is the tournament for which he spends 50 weeks each year counting the days, and he has said, with only the slightest bit of sarcasm, that it’s one of just two that he really cares about.
The Citi Open in Washington, D.C., is the other, but nothing compares to his home Grand Slam. That can be a double-edged sword, as for Fritz.
“I’m so amped up,” Tiafoe said last week. That too can have both advantages and disadvantages, and he knows it. New coach David Witt’s reputation as one of the more laid-back souls in the game is one of the reasons Tiafoe hired him.
“I can get really high and pretty low, and he keeps me even-keeled,” he said. “Not allowing moments to be bigger than they are, or to be as strenuous as I can sometimes make them.”
Frances Tiafoe is beginning to look more like himself after a difficult first six months of the year. (Kena Betancur / AFP via Getty Images)
Come showtime, Tiafoe was doing his thing, with plenty of the whippy forehands and touch volleys that can make him a human highlight reel when he is on. On is what he was for much of the night, which ended in a four-set win over another American, Alex Kovacevic.
Tiafoe wobbled a bit in the third set, failing to put away Kovacevic with the efficiency he will need if he wants to get back to the second week.
“Got pretty tough there at the end,” Tiafoe said.
On the always nervy opening night at the home Slam, it was enough to take care of business.
(Top photo of Brandon Nakashima: Matt Rourke / Associated Press)
Sports
Teenage golfer Miles Russell delivers his dad an all-time Father’s Day experience during US Open final round
America 250: Bobby Jones
Bobby Jones was born on March 17, 1902, in Atlanta, Georgia, and became one of the greatest amateur golfers in history. As a teenager, he reached the third round of the U.S. Amateur at age 14, showing early promise. He went on to win 13 major championships, all as an amateur, a record that still stands. In 1930, Jones achieved the
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Miles Russell is the youngest player in the 2026 U.S. Open field at just 17 years old. Teeing it up in a major championship at that age, let alone making the cut as he did at Shinnecock Hills, made for an already unforgettable week for him and his family.
The young man had one final surprise up his sleeve for Sunday’s final round, however, that not only his family will cherish forever, but made plenty of golf fans watching the moment unfold a bit misty-eyed.
After hitting his approach shot into the par-4 18th, Russell’s caddie made his way over to the gallery. He proceeded to take off his caddie bib and hand it and Russell’s golf bag over to Russell’s father, Joe.
Miles Russell plays his tee shot on the 11th hole during the second round of the UNC Health Championship at Raleigh Country Club on May 29, 2026 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Jordan Bank/Getty Images) ((Photo by Jordan Bank/Getty Images))
TEENAGE PHENOM MILES RUSSELL MAKES ENTIRE GOLF WORLD FEEL OLD WITH EYE-POPPING QUOTE AHEAD OF US OPEN DEBUT
According to the NBC broadcast, the entire thing was Russell’s idea. He approached USGA rules officials before teeing off on Sunday to ask them if it was okay to have his dad take over caddying duties for the final hole, and they gave him the green light.
Talk about a Father’s Day gift that may never be topped.
“It was pretty cool,” Russell said after Sunday’s final round. “Just there walking up 18, that’s when he stepped in. It was kind of a fun Father’s Day gift. Kind of cool since it was my first one. Hopefully it’s something he’ll remember for a long time.”
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Amateur Miles Russell of the United States walks across the 16th hole during the first round of the 126th U.S. OPEN at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on June 18, 2026 in Southampton, New York. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images) (Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
Russell shot 3-over in the opening two rounds of the U.S. Open to make the cut by two shots. During Saturday’s third round, he struggled a bit en route to a 74, but backed it up with a final round score of even par.
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Miles Russell on the seventh tee during the first round of 126th U.S. Open Championship at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on June 18, 2026 in Southampton, New York. (Photo by Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR via Getty Images) (Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR via Getty Images)
Russell qualified for this week’s U.S. Open after advancing in the final stage of qualifying in a three-man playoff vying for two spots in the field. He had Charlie Woods, Tiger’s son, on the bag as his caddie during the qualifier. Both Woods and Russell have committed to play college golf at Florida State.
In 2024, Russell became the youngest player in Korn Ferry Tour history to make the cut in a tournament, eventually finishing T-20
The Lakers will seek to use their 25th pick in Tuesday’s first round of the NBA draft on a player who fills a need on a roster that could have up to nine free agents this summer. Yet the Lakers also are aware that picking that late in the round could leave them selecting the best player available.
They probably will be in search of a center who can be a lob threat or an athletic wing who can play defense and knock down three-pointers, two positions the Lakers crave as they try to build a team around star Luka Doncic that fits best with his style of play.
Names that NBA executives and mock drafts attached to the Lakers are Kentucky center Jayden Quaintance, Texas forward Dailyn Swain and Duke wing Isaiah Evans.
The Lakers spent time in Spain looking at 20-year-old guard Sergio de Larrea, but many NBA scouts see him going later in the first round or even in the second. According to people not authorized to speak publicly, the Lakers were impressed by their workout with Purdue point guard Braden Smith. But he’s on the smaller side (6 feet) and played four years in college, leading scouts to believe his upside is not that high and that he’ll be drafted in the second round.
The Lakers don’t have a pick in Wednesday’s second round.
After the Lakers were swept by a deep and athletic Oklahoma City team in the second round of the playoffs, president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka outlined what it takes when trying to compete in the uber-tough Western Conference against the likes of the Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs, who became the second-youngest team to reach the NBA Finals.
Pelinka looked at how Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell was drafted in the second round and how he flourished in just his second season, especially in the playoffs, in which he averaged 15.1 points and 4.3 assists in 11 games.
“Depth is really important, athleticism and youth. We have a lot of components of that on our roster, but we need to add to it,” Pelinka said last month during his exit interview with the media. “I think those are some of the key North Stars that we need to look at.
“One of the players that they had who played really well, Ajay Mitchell, they got in the second round. So there’s ways to add to your roster if you commit to doing the hard work and commit to the process of adding the right pieces. … We’ll be doing that through the draft and free agency and through trades. We’ve gotta find a way to have a roster that will compete with any team in the NBA. That’s what we do here.”
The Lakers do have three tradable first-round picks — 2026, 2031 and 2033 — but the latter two can’t be moved until after the draft.
Lakers star LeBron James is an unrestricted free agent and is looking for a deal from the Lakers, while Austin Reaves is expected to opt out of his $14.8-million deal so he can sign a contract with them for up to five years and about $241 million.
Still, the Lakers have to proceed with the draft to find a player.
Texas forward Dailyn Swain, left, vies for a loose ball against Purdue guard Braden Smith during an NCAA tournament game in March.
(Godofredo A. Vásquez / Associated Press)
Swain (6-7) and Evans (6-6) are the kind of athletic wings the Lakers could use, but both might be chosen before the Lakers make their pick.
The 6-9 Quaintance could slide to the Lakers because of health concerns. He played in only four games last season at Kentucky because the team was being cautious following knee surgery after he tore an anterior cruciate ligament when he played at Arizona State.
Scouts still view him as mobile, athletic and young enough — he turns 19 next month — to develop. But, Quaintance will need to rehab his knee and probably won’t be ready for the upcoming season. When healthy, scouts said, he can be the lob threat and defender that Doncic yearns to have.
Sports
Bryce Harper hits for cycle, Kyle Schwarber blasts three homers in Phillies blowout win over Mets
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The Phillies’ turnaround following the dismissal of manager Rob Thomson reached a new milestone when two of the franchise’s biggest stars delivered a historic performance.
Kyle Schwarber launched three home runs, including two in the third inning, while Bryce Harper completed the cycle to add yet another achievement to his accomplished career.
The offensive explosion powered Philadelphia to a 15-3 rout of the New York Mets on Saturday, as the Phillies continued their surge and received a signature performance from two of the game’s most recognizable stars.
Philadelphia Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber celebrates his home run with Bryce Harper during the third inning against the New York Mets in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on June 20, 2026. (Chris Szagola/AP)
Schwarber’s first home run traveled 456 feet, while his second blast of the third inning measured 457 feet off Mets reliever Cionel Pérez.
He capped his night with a two-run homer in the seventh inning. Schwarber’s major league-leading home run total climbed to 28, and the performance marked the fifth three-homer game of his career.
Cristopher Sanchez allowed one earned run in six innings to lower his ERA to 1.80.
It’s his 23rd straight start at Citizens Bank Park in which he allowed two earned runs or fewer, the second-most such starts by a pitcher at the same ballpark in MLB history since 1913, trailing only Jacob deGrom’s 24 at Citi Field for the Mets from Sept. 9, 2019 to Aug. 31, 2022.
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Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies leave the field after defeating the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 20, 2026. (Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Schwarber is the 67th player in major league history and second this season with multiple home runs in an inning, joining Houston’s Yordan Alvarez on June 12.
Schwarber is the fourth Phillies player to hit two home runs in an inning, along with Trea Turner (Aug. 19, 2023), Von Hayes (June 11, 1985) and Andy Seminick (June 2, 1949).
Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber hits a solo home run in the bottom of the third inning against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on June 20, 2026. (Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Harper hit a solo home run in the first inning, his 16th of the year. He doubled and singled in the third, then hit a two-run triple to the gap in left-center field in the fifth for his first career cycle and the 11th in Phillies history.
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The Phillies and Mets will wrap up their three-game series Sunday night, with first pitch set for 7:20 p.m. ET.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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